


Morning

by Leareth



Series: Morning [2]
Category: X/1999
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-08-04
Updated: 2013-09-24
Packaged: 2017-11-06 07:29:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/416284
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leareth/pseuds/Leareth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Get back and put up a kekkai. There’s a Dragon of Earth in the kitchen.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Monk

He slept restlessly, tossing and turning much as he had for the past three nights, adrift in a space somewhere between slumber and awakening. It was a dark space, filled with vague flashes of dull pain that were ever-changing, shifting in shape and varicoloured like pieces of torn, ragged silk thrown about in a wind. He had been offered assistance to enable him to sleep better, but refused. Physical pain gave him something to focus on; drugs allowed the nightmares to come.

A shadow passed in front of the window, silent and dark. It reached out over the bed, over the young man trapped in uneasy slumber, and touched the bandage wrapped around his head.

Subaru froze.

 

* * * 

 

Sorata, as usual, was the first one awake. Schedules at Koya-san's monastery had accustomed him to early mornings, often before dawn, and even though he was no longer expected to keep such a routine here at CLAMP campus it was a habit he couldn't get rid of. Since there was usually no one else awake at the time he was, Sorata used his few hours of solitude in the house exercising either physically or spiritually. This particular morning he had gone for a run, making the most of the last few weeks of summer. The run left him ravenous for breakfast, and upon getting back he set about preparing some for himself and the rest of the inhabitants of the house. That abruptly came to a stop when he found the little plastic bottle hidden behind the bowls.

Sorata's eyes narrowed as he read the bottle's label. Pain-killers, prescribed by a doctor at the Shinjuku hospital. This one was a new unopened bottle, brought in with Subaru when the Sumeragi had been pulled out of that hospital, just before the destruction of the Shinjuku kekkai, and were meant to assist Subaru recover from his recent blinding. Sorata distinctly remembered thoughtfully putting the bottle on Subaru's bedside table. Somehow it had ended up downstairs hidden away. Sorata didn't for one moment think it had walked. Sighing, Sorata left breakfast preparations for the moment and, pocketing the bottle, went upstairs to the Sumeragi's room. It was all very well for the Sumeragi to prefer suffering in silence, but it would make Kamui, who already felt guilty over the loss of his friend's eye, feel unhappy, and if Kamui was unhappy Sorata didn't feel too good either. At least if Subaru really didn't want to take his medicine he could hide it where Kamui wasn't going to find it.

He came to Subaru's bedroom door. It was closed, of course. Sorata didn't really want to knock – Yuzuriha's room was right across the hall and she was probably still asleep, and he definitely didn't want Kamui to find out what Subaru was up to. In the end Sorata gave the door a short tap to announce his presence, then turned the handle to open it. "Subaru-san?"

He went inside. The curtains were slightly open, letting a beam of early morning sun in to slide over the wooden floor and over the bed. Sorata walked a few steps further in, scanning the shadows of the room looking for its occupant. After himself Subaru was the next earliest riser, so Sorata headed for the window expecting to find the Sumeragi on the balcony outside having a smoke. "Hey, Subaru-san? I found something of yours in the kitchen that I'm hoping you just lost by accident otherwise—"

The shadows on the bed moved slightly. Sorata stopped and glanced over his shoulder. By the sunlight from the window he caught sight of a figure sitting up in the bed watching him – and froze in shock.

The Sakurazukamori lifted a finger to his lips. "Shh," he said softly. "He's still sleeping."

Sorata got his limbs moving again. Automatically he dropped into a defensive posture, mind racing frantically as he realised that Subaru, wrapped in blankets and apparently dead to the world, was lying with his head in the Sakurazukamori's lap. The Sakurazukamori himself was sitting against the bed's headboard, tie discarded and shirt unbuttoned at the neck. Even in that casual pose there was no hiding the quiet aura of menace around the man – Sorata called up his power, praying that Subaru would wake up or someone else would come in to help; this was a dangerous situation, very dangerous, the Sakurazukamori, probably the most powerful Dragon of Earth after the Dark Kamui, was here, in the Seals' residence, and he had a hostage—

"Please don't do that," said the Sakurazukamori, giving the halo of electricity beginning to crackle about Sorata's hand a disdainful look. "As I said, Subaru-kun is still sleeping, and given that he hasn't slept well for the past several nights it's in his best interests that he not be woken. Put that little display away and behave yourself."

"Like hell I will," hissed Sorata. Why didn't Subaru wake up? "How did you get in and what have you done to Subaru-san?!"

"To answer your first question, I came in via Subaru-kun's window." As the Sakurazukamori spoke, he stroked one hand almost absently over Subaru's hair. Sorata stared. "He doesn't ward it at night, a fact which I've made use of several times already. As for your second question, I haven't done anything to Subaru-kun that he hasn't done himself or wished to be done. Does that satisfy you?"

Sorata gritted his teeth. "Let Subaru-san go."

The Sakurazukamori raised an eyebrow at him. "And just what do you plan on doing if I refuse?"

"I'll fry your ass."

"With Subaru-kun right here in my arms? I highly doubt it. Now turn off that little light show of yours and be quiet."

"Walk away from Subaru-san and I'll think about it—"

"Seishirou-san?" The dark shock of hair in the Sakurazukamori's lap lifted up. Subaru, his right eye still bandaged, looked groggily around. "What's going on?"

Sorata opened his mouth to shout a warning – "It's nothing, Subaru-kun," said the Sakurazukamori, reaching up to put a firm hand on Subaru's shoulder. "You're tired; go back to sleep." Sorata stared, completely taken aback at the Sakurazukamori's behaviour to the Sumeragi. "I'll wake you when you need to eat breakfast."

Subaru struggled, trying to get up. "But I—"

" _Sleep._ " The Sakurazukamori's voice was low, heavy with underlying command. He put a hand over Subaru's face; immediately, the Sumeragi went limp. Sorata's eyes widened in horror.

"What did you—"

"Don't jump to conclusions," said the Sakurazukamori. He inspected Subaru's face before carefully pushing him off to lie properly on the bed. "He's asleep, nothing else." As Sorata watched warily, the Sakurazukamori got off the bed and straightened his clothes. Then he walked over towards Sorata. Sorata tensed, expecting an attack of some sort, but the Sakurazukamori passed him with barely a glance in favour of the windows. As Sorata watched, the Sakurazukamori shut the curtains with a sharp pull, leaving the room lit only by the blue-white lightning still crackling about Sorata's hand. "For the last time, will you please get rid of that?" asked the Sakurazukamori.

For a brief moment Sorata hesitated, suspecting that the moment he did so the Sakurazukamori would attack. Then again, the Sakurazukamori hadn't done anything threatening at all yet, and he had moved away from Subaru therefore giving up his main advantage …

The Sakurazukamori watched him patiently. Sorata glanced at the bed.

Subaru-san _did_ look to be nothing more than asleep …

Reluctantly Sorata dismissed the electricity. He did not, of course, abandon his guard; far from it, he raised it higher. Warily he glared at the Sakurazukamori. "What do you want here?"

The Sakurazukamori smirked. He seemed to be mightily amused by the whole situation. It irritated Sorata to no end. "I want to get breakfast. Now since you obviously have no intention of leaving me alone, could you at least guide me to the kitchen?"


	2. The Shrine Maiden

Arashi knew something was up the moment she stepped out of her room and into the corridor. Usually when she came out of her room she could hear Sorata preparing breakfast since the young monk had a habit of humming or whistling while he cooked. This morning, even though there was the sound of someone in the kitchen, there was no music. Frowning a little, Arashi made her way downstairs and turned left into the kitchen. Once she got there she stopped in the doorway and stared in shock.

The Sakurazukamori looked back at her. "Good morning," he said cordially.

Arashi's shock didn't last long. In a heartbeat she had summoned her sword and moved into an attack position. Breakfast was obviously on hold. "How did you get in here and what are you doing?" she demanded.

"I'm making breakfast." The Sakurazukamori indicated the pot of water waiting on the stove and the rice-pot he was holding. "You'll pardon me if it's only for one person. By the way, the lighter for the gas stove is broken."

Arashi blinked at this complete non sequitur. "What?"

"Got it," said a voice from off-side. Arashi turned her head as much as she could without removing her eyes from the Sakurazukamori to find Sorata coming down the stairs behind her. Sorata's face lit up. "Ah, Nee-chan! Good morning! Did you sleep well?"

"Get back and put up a kekkai," she ordered tensely. "There's a Dragon of Earth in the kitchen."

"Yes, I know." Sorata scowled, walking closer. "He's making breakfast and made me go up to get his cigarette lighter so he can light the stove."

The second non sequitur in less than a minute left Arashi floundering for something to say. In front of her, the Sakurazukamori had turned his attention to Sorata. "Ah, Arisugawa-kun. Did you find it?"

"Yeah." With a grim face Sorata took Arashi's arm and gently took her aside; Arashi was too startled to resist. "It's okay, I think," he muttered under his breath. "I found him upstairs in Subaru-san's room but he hasn't done anything, he just wants to make breakfast. Yes, really—"

"If you're going to spend the next five minutes explaining the situation to your comrade, then please do it after you've handed me the lighter," said the Sakurazukamori. He was opening cupboards around the kitchen apparently looking for something. "Where do you store your rice?"

Sorata entered the kitchen as if there were a snake on the floor. "Bottom of the pantry," he said shortly, putting the lighter on the kitchen bench. He then returned, took Arashi's sword-arm, and led her back to the far side of the dinner table. Arashi let him, but didn't dismiss her sword. 

"Are you out of your mind?" she demanded.

Sorata looked unhappy. "The guy came in by himself through the window in Subaru-san's room. He says he's not here to pick a fight and he doesn't seem to have done anything yet, and I didn't want to just start flinging electricity about since the rest of the house wasn't up yet—"

"What was he doing in Sumeragi-san's room?" interrupted Arashi.

"I don't know. I don't want to know. I found him sitting in Subaru-san's _bed_ with Subaru-san's head in his _lap_ , believe it or not."

The mental image that brought up was disturbing. "Is Sumeragi-san all right?"

"I think so, but _that_ guy put him to sleep. Said that Subaru-san needed his rest—"

"You have no fish in the fridge." The Sakurazukamori stood in the kitchen doorway. Arashi immediately moved into a defensive position. The Sakurazukamori glanced at her sword, but otherwise didn't respond. "I need you to go buy some salmon," he said to Sorata.

" _What!_ " Sorata's jaw dropped. "Why?"

"Subaru-kun prefers grilled salmon with his breakfast when he remembers to eat it. As I recall there's a shop fifteen minutes walk away from here or two minutes if you're flying—"

"How do you know that?"

"This isn't the first time I've been to this house, though it's the first time I've been downstairs," said the Sakurazukamori patiently. "As I was saying, I need some salmon. Go buy some."

Sorata glared. "If you think I'm going to leave the house while you're here—"

"I have no doubt the Ise Priestess will keep a very close eye on me," the Sakurazukamori said smoothly. Suddenly he smirked; Arashi didn't like it. "Really, Arisugawa-kun, I couldn't care less if you trusted me or not, but I will tell you that if I wanted to destroy the home of the Seals I would have done it long ago."

Sorata glared for a moment, visibly struggling to make a decision. The Sakurazukamori watched him patiently, obviously not intending to move until someone obeyed him. "Fine," Sorata gritted out. "But you're giving me the money – hell as if I'm paying for your goods."

"Of course." The Sakurazukamori reached into his pocket for his wallet, and counted out several notes. "That should be enough."

Sorata came around the table and took the money warily as if expecting it to explode. "Salmon, right?" he asked. The Sakurazukamori nodded, already turning back to the kitchen. Arashi wondered if she was still sleeping and having some surreal dream, because the situation was entirely too weird. This was the _Sakurazukamori_ , a _Dragon of Earth_ , in their house and instead of attacking them, he was … being domestic.

Sorata paused as he passed her for the front door. His clear grey eyes met hers, silently communicating the obvious message. Arashi nodded; despite Sorata's teasing and her reservations about his feelings for her, in a situation like this they understood each other perfectly. Sorata flashed a smile, then left. The sound of the door closing echoed through the hall.

Arashi was left alone with the Sakurazukamori. Sort of alone – Subaru, Yuzuriha and Kamui were upstairs, but she couldn't afford to take the few seconds to run upstairs to get them, and raising her voice would only alert her enemy as well. Until the others came down, she had to deal with the Dragon of Earth by herself if he was going to do anything. And right now he was …

She glanced into the kitchen. The Sakurazukamori, having lit the stove and put the pot of water to boil, was now kneeling in the pantry opening the rice-bin. Eyes narrowed suspiciously, Arashi moved closer until she stood in the kitchen doorway effectively blocking it, sword still in hand. She moved silently, but the Sakurazukamori still looked up. Arashi's lips tightened as his mismatched eyes met hers. "If you're going to keep watch over me," he said calmly, "why don't you get a chair and make yourself comfortable?"

"You don't need to concern yourself about me," said Arashi.

The Sakurazukamori smiled, or at least that was the impression he gave. "I can hardly allow a young lady to stand." Abruptly he stood up leaving the measuring cup and rice-pot on the floor. Arashi immediately tensed and raised her sword, but the man simply walked past her to the dining table. He took one of the chairs there and moved to place it beside the door, adjusting it to make sure it provided a good view of the kitchen. "There we go."

Arashi simply Looked at him. The Sakurazukamori merely smiled. "Suit yourself." He returned to the kitchen pantry and knelt down again, measuring out the rice. Arashi watched the Sakurazukamori warily; despite the fact that his back was to her she didn't think for a moment that he was ignoring her, or that he had dropped his defences. If half of what she knew about him was true he was quite capable of doing serious damage from a kneeling position. "So you're the Ise Hidden Shrine Maiden," he said. "You're about what I expected."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Arashi, suspicious of the sudden conversation.

"Focused. Reserved with a quiet intensity. Lovely as well, though I'm sure you'll be far more beautiful if you smiled once in a while."

Arashi ignored the compliment; with all the practice she got from Sorata, it was very easy to do. "Why are you cooking breakfast?" she asked, changing the subject.

"Because Subaru-kun needs to eat something. He rarely eats breakfast, and when he does, he doesn't eat much, am I right?"

Arashi frowned. Yuzuriha, Sorata and Kamui always tried to convince Subaru to eat breakfast properly without success, so much so that it was almost a daily morning ritual. "How do you know so much about Sumeragi-san?"

"I know a lot of things about Subaru-kun," said the Sakurazukamori matter-of-factly. He stood up and went to the sink to wash the rice. Still uncertain of the situation – and disturbed by the implications of his last statement – she tightened her grip on her sword, but otherwise let him move unhindered. Suddenly, he paused and looked at her. "How many people live in this house?"

Arashi hesitated for a moment before realising that given how much the Sakurazukamori knew about them already it was pointless trying to hide that information. "Five."

"And I'm presuming that other than Subaru-kun, the other four which includes yourself and Arisugawa-kun, all eat breakfast regularly."

Where on earth was he going with this? "Yes."

"Very well, then." Before Arashi could say anything, the Sakurazukamori returned to the rice-bin and quickly added several more cups of rice to the pot.

"What are you doing?" she demanded.

The Sakurazukamori smirked as he went to wash the rice – Arashi got the impression that he was getting a kick out of the situation. "If I'm using your kitchen, it would be very impolite not to include the rest of the household."

"You're going to make breakfast for _all of us?_ "

"It's just as easy to cook rice for six people as it is for one. Don't worry, I won't poison the food."

Arashi's eyes narrowed. "Six? Who's the sixth person?"

The Sakurazukamori poured water over the rice. "Myself."

" _You?_ "

"Why not?" The Sakurazukamori gave another smirk – oh, he was _definitely_ getting a kick out of this. "I haven't eaten yet either."

Arashi could find nothing to reply to this. She stared as the Sakurazukamori went to put the rice-pot in the cooker and turn it on, all the while behaving as if it were his very own kitchen. She was still trying to come to grips with the idea of the Sakurazukamori as their personal cook for the morning when a vicious snarl was heard and Inuki came pelting down the stairs heading straight for the Sakurazukamori's throat.


	3. The Inugami Mistress

Yuzuriha's morning always revolved around the same routine: she would hug Inuki good morning, do some stretches, then turn on the small radio on her desk and sing along to whatever was playing as she got dressed and ready for breakfast. She had set herself into this routine when she had started high school, mainly because otherwise she tended to find various reasons to be late for class. This morning, however, there was a slight hiccup – Inuki wasn't beside her bed like he was supposed to be.

Rubbing her eyes, Yuzuriha sat up and looked around her room, first towards the window in case Inuki was on the outside balcony watching the street, then the expanse of floor outside the bathroom, then back to his usual place on the floor beside her bed just in case she had missed him. Her spirit-dog wasn't there. It was only when Yuzuriha looked across the room to the door did she find him.

"Inuki?" Frowning, Yuzuriha got out of bed. Her inugami stood very still and alert, nose just short of touching the door. Yuzuriha halted, recognising the warning signs. Then she gathered herself, and quietly knelt down beside Inuki.

"All right," she whispered, stroking Inuki's head partly to calm him, partly to calm herself. Of all things that could happen first thing in the morning, she never expected danger. Already her heart was beating a little faster and she took a deep breath, trying to think calmly. Inuki sensed danger in the house, that was obvious, but what about everyone else? Sora-chan was usually awake by this time, as was Arashi. Subaru-san probably hadn't left his room yet. Kamui she had no idea – sometimes the boy got up early woken by bad dreams, sometimes he got up late for precisely the same reasons. Still, just because she knew their routines didn't mean they were actually keeping to them today, which meant for now only she could do something about the situation. "Okay, Inuki," she said softly, rolling up the ends of her yellow pajamas – at the very least, couldn't this danger whatever-it-was have the courtesy to _wait_ until she was dressed? "Looks like it's just you and me at the moment. Let's be careful, okay?" Inuki didn't move. "Let's go."

She opened the door. Outside, the hall was empty however she could hear the murmurs of low voices floating up the stairs. It didn't seem like there was anything wrong, but as Yuzuriha tiptoed towards the staircase, Inuki became more agitated. By the time they reached the top of the stairs, the inugami's ears were flat against his head and the not-quite-physical growl he was giving out made Yuzuriha's teeth buzz. "Be quiet," she shushed, kneeling down on the top step. The voices from downstairs were too soft for her to hear properly, but if she listened very carefully, she could make out something …

"… going to make breakfast for _all of us?_ "

"It's just as easy to cook for six people as it is for one. Don't worry, I won't poison the food."

Yuzuriha frowned. The first voice was immediately recognisable as Arashi's, but second voice was completely unfamiliar. It was a man's voice, with a depth that made Yuzuriha think of someone around Seiichiro Aoki's age, however whereas Seiichiro Aoki sounded warm and kind this person sounded like someone Yuzuriha did not want to meet on a dark street. Obviously this stranger was the reason for Inuki's agitation. Still, something wasn't making sense. If the unknown man downstairs was an enemy, why was he talking with Arashi about cooking breakfast?

"Six? Who's the sixth person?"

There was the sound of water running in the sink. "Myself."

" _You?_ "

"Why not? I haven't eaten yet either."

Inuki's growling was increasing with every second. Yuzuriha buried her hand in the ruff of his neck, restraining him – she didn't want to do anything until she was completely certain of just what was going on downstairs. Arashi sounded surprised and disbelieving, but not particularly distressed or in trouble, so perhaps there was just some big misunderstanding going on. Maybe she should go back and get Kamui and Subaru—

Without warning Inuki snarled and leapt out from under her hand, darting down the stairs in a blur. Yuzuriha reached out for him too late. "Inuki!" she yelled, part in irritation part in alarm, before running down the stairs after him. Arashi was standing in the kitchen doorway with her sword in hand, and had turned towards them in surprise. Quickly Inuki blurred past her, Yuzuriha not far behind, and darted into the kitchen towards the man standing in front of the stove. "Inuki!"

The inugami leapt. The unknown man in their kitchen glanced up, his expression startled for a moment before he quickly dodged to one side grabbing something off the spice-rack. The blur that was Inuki coalesced against the wall, reformed into dog-shape, then leapt again for the man's throat. At the last minute the stranger moved, bringing his arm around in a scooping motion – and Inuki disappeared.

Yuzuriha and Arashi stared in shock. In front of them the stranger was standing up from the defensive crouch he had fallen into. The inugami was nowhere to be seen. " _Inuki!_ " Yuzuriha shouted, trying to reach out. Arashi had to take one hand off her sword to restrain her. Struggling in the older girl's grip Yuzuriha glared fiercely at the stranger. "What did you do!"

The stranger looked amused. He was a tall man, with dark hair and somewhat angular features. His eyes, Yuzuriha noticed, were rather disconcerting: one was amber-gold and the other one was white. Overall he was very handsome, but considering what he had just done to Inuki that didn't count for anything. "I take it that you must be the inugami mistress," the stranger said calmly.

Yuzuriha seethed, hoping that her fear wasn't too apparent. "What did you do to Inuki!"

"Nothing drastic." The man lifted his right hand, showing them what he held. It was a medium-sized jar, the kind that had started its career as a container for pickled vegetables. Sorata had recycled it to store dried onions. It was difficult to see the dried onions at the moment, partly because there hadn't been much left to begin with, partly because of the black ofuda card that sealed the top, and partly because of the swirl of pure energy trapped in the jar that was growling like a miniature roll of thunder. "You'll forgive me if I think that with regards to my personal safety it's not a good idea to let him out."

Yuzuriha and Arashi stared. "How did you do that?" asked Arashi in disbelief.

The man smiled. It did nothing to make Yuzuriha feel better. "I'm an onmyouji, just like Subaru-kun. It's not difficult to bind an inugami if you're quick enough to catch it." There was an angry bark from the jar of dried onions. The man held it out to Yuzuriha. "Here you go."

Arashi's hand tightened on Yuzuriha's shoulder. "Don't take it," she said quietly, raising her sword.

"If I wanted to hurt you I don't have to stoop to any tricks," said the man. He smiled at Yuzuriha. "Go on."

Yuzuriha stared at the glowing jar for a moment, Arashi's slim hand heavy on her shoulder. Then, slowly, she reached out to take it, darting back as soon as she had a good grip. The jar of Inuki buzzed against her palm whimpering. "Oh, Inuki," she whispered. Without thinking she began to peel off the black ofuda—

"Please don't." Yuzuriha glanced up to find the strange man – undoubtedly a Dragon of Earth, now that she thought about it – watching her closely. "I have things to do and I can't get them done if your inugami keeps trying to tear my throat out."

"I'm not leaving him stuck like this," objected Yuzuriha.

"I understand. However, I hope that _you_ understand that if he's set free and attacks me again, he might not be handed back to you so neatly."

Yuzuriha paled, but stood her ground. "I'm not leaving him like this," she repeated firmly. "And I can keep him under control."

For a long moment the Dragon of Earth looked at her, mismatched eyes unreadable. Yuzuriha unconsciously shifted into a defensive posture, but then suddenly the man smiled. "If you say so."

He turned his back on them, returning to whatever he had been doing which was apparently making soup. Arashi, her face unreadable, followed him at a short distance with sword still drawn obviously not trusting him out of her sight. Quietly Yuzuriha moved to one side, huddling over the jar and whispering to it. "Listen to me, Inuki. I'm going to let you out, but when I do, you _have_ to be good, all right? I'm serious – this guy is dangerous and he might do something to you if you try to attack him again, so please, _please_ stay close to me and behave yourself, do you hear?" The jar buzzed sullenly. "Okay."

She peeled the ofuda off. Immediately a pale blur of pure energy jumped out, circling the ceiling once before pouring down the wall to form into a spirit-dog again at Yuzuriha's feet. Inuki's eyes fixed on the Dragon of Earth, a low growling in his throat but otherwise strayed no further, and when Yuzuriha bent down to hug him in relief even the growling hushed.

"I'm home! Oh, Yuzu-chan, good morning!" Sorata closed the front door behind him and took off his shoes, balancing the grocery bag on one arm. Coming down the hall, his eyes narrowed as he took in the way Yuzuriha was protectively hugging Inuki in relief. "What happened?"

"Ah, Arisugawa-kun, welcome back." Yuzuriha jumped as the Dragon of Earth came up behind her to take the bags from Sorata, who glowered but let him. "Thank you very much."

"Whatever. Here's your change." Sorata handed the Dragon of Earth some coins, then glanced at Arashi. "Miss me, Nee-chan?"

Arashi didn't even look at him. "Hardly."

Sorata pulled puppy-dog eyes on her for a moment before returning to seriousness and asking, "Did anything happen?"

"The Sakurazukamori threatened Inuki when the inugami tried to attack him."

Sorata's eyes narrowed. "But everyone's okay, right?"

" _Sakurazukamori?_ " squeaked Yuzuriha as Inuki growled again. Eyes wide, she stared up at the strange man, who simply smiled at her as he went back to the kitchen. " _He's_ the Sakurazukamori?"

"The way you say it, it's almost as if you expected me to have three heads." The Sakurazukamori took out the groceries and inspected them critically. He must have been satisfied, because he took the fish out of the wrapping and put it on the chopping board.

"I don't think she expected the feared assassin to be a chef," said Sorata dryly. "Look, just how long are you going to take? Usually I'm a really hospitable guy but you've got to understand that the sentiment doesn't extend to my enemies for obvious reasons."

"As long as I need to take and no more."

Sorata and Arashi's faces darkened. "Um, Sakurazukamori-san," began Yuzuriha hesitantly.

"Seishirou. Sakurazuka Seishirou. And who might you be?"

"Yuzuriha. Um, just what are you doing, Sakurazuka-san?"

The Sakurazukamori smiled at her. "I'm making breakfast. I did originally intend to only make breakfast for Subaru-kun, but after conversing with your lovely Ise priestess I realised that if I was using your kitchen it was only polite to include the rest of the household."

Sorata's jaw dropped. "You're _what?_ "

"You heard me correctly." The Sakurazukamori fetched a knife from the rack and began cleaning the fish. "Don't stare like that, Arisugawa-kun, it's not your best expression, especially when you're trying to impress a young lady."

Reddening, Sorata clamped his mouth shut. Yuzuriha blinked. "Why are you making breakfast for us and Subaru-san?"

"Because, Yuzuriha-chan, Subaru-kun is the kind of person who skips the most important meal of the day unless he's firmly reminded otherwise, and I thought it would be good for him to have company to help remind him. You will having breakfast, I hope?"

Yuzuriha looked from Arashi to Sorata. Arashi was still watching the Sakurazukamori as if he were a live snake, but Sorata just shrugged. "I guess so?" said Yuzuriha, just as the front door bell rang. Every body in the kitchen looked up.

Sorata stepped forward. "I'll get it." As he did so Inuki slipped out from under Yuzuriha's hand and padded down the hall. Yuzuriha quickly followed him, not before casting an unsure glance at the Sakurazukamori. Interestingly enough he looked wary, but before Yuzuriha could wonder about it, Sorata had opened the door.

Kasumi Karen and Aoki Seiichiro smiled at them. "Good morning!" the Soapgirl said cheerfully.

Yuzuriha ducked under Sorata's arm and around Inuki's wagging tail to greet them. "Karen-san! Aoki-san!"

"Man, am I glad to see you guys," said Sorata with visible relief. Yuzuriha squeaked as she was nearly squashed by Sorata leaning out the door towards Karen and Seiichiro to whisper urgently, "We have a problem."

Karen and Seiichiro frowned. "What is it?" asked the Windmaster.

"One of the Angels invaded—" began Sorata, but then he was cut off as the door was abruptly pulled wide open. Inuki snarled.

The Sakurazukamori looked over the newcomers. "Good morning," he said cordially, leaning nonchalantly on the half-prostrate Sorata who spluttered at his conversion into an arm-rest. Yuzuriha grabbed Inuki to physically hold her inugami back from snapping at the Angel – just how had he come up behind them so quietly? "You must be two of the other Dragons of Heaven. If you've come for breakfast, you've arrived at the right time though I think we now need more fish."

Despite the suddenness of the Sakurazukamori's appearance, Karen, Yuzuriha noticed in awed admiration, had immediately summoned a flame into her hand, and whilst Seiichiro Aoki hadn't reacted quite so dramatically the air around them was noticeably more active. Karen's eyes were hard. "Who are you," she demanded.

"Sakurazuka Seishirou of the Dragons of Earth." The Sakurazukamori smiled at them, ignoring Sorata's calls to Arashi to rescue him. "Would you like to come in?"


	4. The Fire Lady

Karen was considered an early riser for a woman who worked in the adult industry, regularly getting up and starting her day at around eight o'clock despite finishing shifts at hours most clubbers called it quits. On this particular morning she had arranged to meet Aoki Seiichiro for morning coffee before going with him to see the younger Seals at CLAMP Campus. Fond as she was of all the Seals Seiichiro was the one closest to her age and as a result they had struck up a genuine friendship, regularly making time to see each other. Whether or not Aoki's wife was aware of these meetings Karen wasn't sure, but she certainly wasn't going to ask. Most likely his wife did know; Aoki didn't strike Karen as the type of man who'd keep secrets from his spouse – other than his involvement in the End of the World, of course.

Karen wondered if she was selfish for being glad Aoki was a Seal like her.

Anyway. The two of them had met at the Ginza café Karen so liked and had a thoroughly enjoyable time with coffee and cake talking about anything but kekkai and earthquakes. Thus far the Ginza area of Tokyo had mostly escaped the destructive skirmishes between the Seals and Angels, so Karen could almost believe it was a normal morning out between friends. In fact, she had been having such a good time chatting with Aoki that they managed to maintain the illusion of normalcy all the way to the train station, through the ride to CLAMP Campus, through the walk to the house where the younger Seals stayed, right up until the point Karen had rung the doorbell and said good morning to Sorata. Then reality gatecrashed in style.

"Good morning," said the stranger who had materialised in the Seals' doorway. He casually leant one arm on a half-prostrate and spluttering Sorata and paid no attention to the way Inuki was snarling barely restrained by Yuzuriha at his feet. "You must be two of the other Dragons of Heaven. If you've come for breakfast, you've arrived at the right time though I think we now need more fish."

If Karen had encountered this man as a prospective customer she wouldn't have seen him - unsavoury types were part of a soapgirl's job but she drew the line at dangerous. Right now every one of Karen's instincts was telling her to defend herself because given the strength of the man's aura he couldn't be anything other than a Dragon of Earth, which meant the area around them was seconds away from being turned into a warzone. Immediately Karen summoned a flame into her hand that danced as behind her Aoki Seiichiro brought the winds in. "Who are you," she demanded.

"Sakurazuka Seishirou of the Dragons of Earth." The man in the doorway smiled, ignoring the growls from Inuki and the irritated yelps of 'get off me you creep' and 'nee-chan help' from Sorata. "Would you like to come in?"

Karen's eyes narrowed. Just what was going on here? Why was this man inviting them into the house even though he certainly didn't belong there? She wished she'd dare take her gaze off him long enough to see what Aoki was making of this, because from where Karen was standing it looked like they had inadvertently walked into some kind of hostage situation … except the hostages weren't acting like hostages. Actually—

"ARGH!" Pinioned beneath the Dragon of Earth's arm Sorata's flailing was growing more and more infuriated. "Let me up you – _ack!_ " Without warning the Dragon of Earth stepped away, sending Sorata stumbling backwards just in time to intercept a very startled Arashi who had apparently been trying to creep up behind them with her sword. The two of them fell to the floor in a crash.

"Sora-chan! Arashi-san!" cried Yuzuriha, still kneeling on the welcome mat with Inuki barking in her arms. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." Arashi's voice was only mildly ruffled in stark contrast to Sorata's, "Nee-chan, you saved me – ow!"

"The perils of young love," sighed the Dragon of Earth dramatically as Arashi presumedly kneed Sorata somewhere painful. "I expect thanks later, Arisugawa-kun."

Karen couldn't help but smile. Actually, the situation looked like some kind of quirky domestic comedy.

" _Thank_ you?" Sorata stood up with hands in fists and face as black as storm clouds. "What the hell would I thank you for? I almost got skewered when you made me slam into Nee-chan!"

The Dragon of Earth smirked. "My point exactly, but it's not my fault you didn't take advantage of your position."

"Take advan—" Sorata turned from black to pink as his thoughts took the inevitable path of all teenaged boys.

"Of course, by 'take advantage', I meant this." Before Sorata could do anything, the Dragon of Earth stepped past him and bowed with hand extended down towards Arashi who was still half-sprawled on the floor, her sword dismissed. It was hard to see from Karen's position, but she could easily imagine how startled Arashi would look at such a gesture and how manners and upbringing would make her accept it. "There we go," said the Dragon of Earth as he helped Arashi to her feet.

Sorata was doing a fantastic impression of a fish. It struck Karen then that Sorata was exactly the type of boy whose buttons would be pushed by irritatingly perfect politeness. "You, you—"

"Should we do something?" Aoki's voice was low and very close to Karen's ear. "That man, he—"

"Isn't supposed to be here, yes," murmured Karen, extinguishing her flame. "But it looks like he's been here for a while and doesn't seem to have done anything." Actually, if Karen hadn't known the man was a Dragon of Earth, from his behaviour he could have been some mischievous uncle who had dropped in unannounced and was taking delight in the commotion that ensued. Right now the man was laughing off Sorata's ranting which kept losing most of its impact as the young monk tried to look both angry and cool in front of an unimpressed Arashi. Even Yuzuriha was giggling at the show. "Let's just see what happens for now, all right?"

"—turn up here and take over the kitchen without so much as _asking_ even the Kigai dude wasn't this uncool—"

"Speaking of the kitchen, Arisugawa-kun," interrupted the Dragon of Earth cheerfully. "Since so many guests have turned up breakfast plans have been changed. I need you to go back and buy more food."

Sorata gaped. " _Why?_ "

"Because, as you can see, breakfast isn't just for one anymore; there's you, the Ise Priestess, Yuzuriha-chan, myself and Subaru-kun, and now our two guests here." He nodded at Karen and Aoki. "Hurry up, you don't want the shop to run out of salmon."

"If you think I'm going to go all the way back—"

"I have an idea," said Karen aloud. Everyone turned to look at her. "Sorata-kun, why don't you and Arashi-chan go to the shops together with Aoki-san? I can look after things here for a while."

The younger Seals blinked at her. "Are you sure?" asked Arashi uncertainly, obviously wondering whether Karen knew what she was suggesting.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine." Karen smiled, carefully noting the look that had dropped over the Dragon of Earth's face. Her smile widened, and she let him see her teeth.

She sensed Aoki lean over her shoulder. "Do you know what you're doing?" the Windmaster murmured into her ear.

"It's okay." Karen kept smiling at the Dragon of Earth as she spoke. "We can't really do anything until we know what's going on anyway. You go with the children and get them to tell you what's been happening; I'll keep an eye on our friend here."

"Will you be all right?"

Oh, he was such a dear man. "Saa, Aoki-san, I deal with bad boys all the time at work, I'll be perfectly fine. Just don't take too long, okay?"

"I'll be quick." A breath of wind against her cheek, and Aoki stepped back – he didn't like the idea but he was willing to trust her abilities. "Very well, then, Sorata-kun, Arashi-san, let's be off, all right?"

Sorata looked at Aoki, then at Karen, then at the Dragon of Earth and back, trying to figure out what was going on. Then he shrugged. "If you say so." Suddenly a huge grin spread over his face. "I get to go to the shops with Nee-chan!"

Arashi's only response to this was to roll her eyes. "How come I'm not going?" asked Yuzuriha plaintively.

"You're still in your pajamas, dear." Gracefully Karen leaned down to pull the girl to her feet, giving Inuki a pat as she did so. "Why don't you run upstairs and get ready for breakfast."

Sorata and Arashi got their shoes, still casting suspicious looks at the Dragon of Earth who politely stood aside to let them through. "Do we need to buy anything other than fish?" Aoki asked the other man.

"Hm, it's Arisugawa-kun's kitchen, he should know what there isn't enough of." The Dragon of Earth took out his wallet and counted out several notes that he gave to Sorata. "Make sure you pick the fresh cuts of fish, all right?"

"Yare, yare." Sorata pocketed the money with an 'I don't believe this is happening' scowl. "But if there's any change left over I'm keeping it as payment for services rendered."

"Certainly."

"Don't take too long!" called out Yuzuriha as the three of them turned to leave. Sorata cheerfully waved at them before hurrying to Arashi's side, saying something about domesticity with his beautiful wife. Arashi elbowed him almost absently, getting a laugh out of Karen and Yuzuriha. Together with Aoki they disappeared down the street.

Karen turned to the Dragon of Earth. "Well then," she said brightly. "Shall we go inside?"

"Of course," said the Dragon of Earth. He wore a pleasant, amiable expression that did nothing to hide the alertness in his eyes. "Please, after you."

He extended an arm down the hallway, graciously waiting for her to precede him. Karen felt her smile grow wider; enemy or not, this man was a performer, adept at masking the tensions of a situation with social grace. Karen was more than happy to play along. "Come on, Yuzuriha-chan," she said, gently pushing the girl to stand and walk in front of her. "Go and get dressed while we make breakfast."

"Um …" Yuzuriha glanced wide-eyed over her shoulder, one hand resting between Inuki's ears as the Dragon of Earth closed the front door behind them. "Are you sure?"

"It's fine, dear. Go on, off with you."

"… Okay. Inuki, you stay here and help Karen-san, all right?" The inugami gave a short affirmative bark. Yuzuriha petted him quickly then turned to dash up the stairs, though not before giving the Dragon of Earth and Karen one last glance of uncertainty. Then she was gone, finally leaving Karen alone with the Dragon of Earth, which was exactly what she wanted.

Still smiling, Karen eased off her shoes in what seemed an offhand manner but was precisely calculated to take advantage of the slit in her skirt. As a soapgirl Karen was highly adept in ways to get the measure of a man, and she fully intended on using those abilities now. "Sakurazuka-san, was it?" she asked, letting her peep-hole heels daintily fall to one side as she slid off her coat. The man nodded slightly, and Karen noted the cool appreciation with which he watched her disrobe – she hardly expected him to be the kind of man who dropped sensible thought at the flash of a shapely thigh, but it was good to know he wasn't blind despite the whiteness of his right eye. She wondered if there was a story behind it as she held out her coat. "Could you hang this up for me?"

The Dragon of Earth didn't even hesitate. "Of course," he said, taking the coat from her and opening the side wardrobe behind the door. Impressively he didn't just drape Karen's coat on the pegs, but actually found a coat hanger and hung her coat properly so that it wouldn't become creased. Karen's estimation of him went up another notch. He caught her eye as they went into the kitchen followed silently by Inuki who went to sit near the dining table where he could keep an eye on the kitchen. "I'm afraid I didn't get your name …?"

"Kasumi Karen." The kitchen was full of steam, created by the combination of busy rice cooker and bubbling pot on the gas stove. Karen immediately went to turn down the stove's heat and switch on the exhaust fan. She couldn't resist taking a look inside the pot; the bottom was thick with bonito flakes. "Mm, this smells good – are you cooking a traditional breakfast?" The man nodded, putting the fish Sorata had bought earlier into the fridge and fetching a sieve. "Well, aren't you a prize. Men aren't generally so handy in the kitchen, let alone thoughtful enough to go to so much effort. Are you someone's prize, Sakurazuka-san?"

"Me?" The man laughed as he returned to the stove. "Certainly not – I'm a bachelor and look to stay that way. What about you, Kasumi-san, surely a woman like you can't be single – is the man you arrived with this morning your partner? "

"Heavens, no, he's just a friend and already happily married, which only goes to prove my theory that all good men are taken or gay."

"Your theory?" Carefully Sakurazuka poured the soup through the sieve, filtering out the bonito. "Interesting – tell me, how would I fit in your theory?"

"You don't." Karen winked at him. "No offence, Mr. Dragon of Earth, but I don't think you count as a good man."

"That's your conclusion?" he replied. He laughed softly as if at some personal joke. "Ah well. Personally I'd argue that there are different contexts for 'good', but I suppose my reputation probably precedes me. I shall have to put extra effort into my cooking in a hope to win some goodwill from you, Kasumi-san."

"My, don't you sound confident. Are you a chef, Sakurazuka-san?"

"Oh no, this is just an indulgence of mine – living alone one tends to pick up some household skills." He lifted the ladle and tasted the soup. "Not bad. Would you like to try?"

Sakurazuka held the ladle out to her. Karen's smile widened. "Why not."

She stepped up to the stove, a move which brought her within inches of the Dragon of Earth. Up close and without high heels it turned out he was almost a head taller than her, and Karen gracefully went up on stockinged toes to drink from the soup ladle, the smell of dashi filling her nose. She glanced up through her eyelashes as she did so, meeting the challenge in the man's mismatched eyes – oh this was fun. Enemy or not the man knew how to play the flirting game and since there was no chance that it would go further the two of them could simply enjoy the game for itself. Besides, the soup did taste delicious. Karen stood down. "Mm, that is good. You certainly are full of surprises."

"I aim to please." Back went the ladle into the soup, and then Sakurazuka was heading to the bin to discard the used bonito before putting the sieve in the sink. "So tell me, Kasumi-san, what kind of job does a beautiful woman like you have that keeps her single?"

Karen gave a disarming smile. "What do you think my work is?"

"Hm." Sakurazuka put one hand on his chin in a show of deep thought. "Modelling?"

Oh, he was a flatterer. "Try again."

"Fashion industry?"

"One more guess. Something less mainstream."

Deliberately the mismatched eyes looked her up and down, slow in the way that implied a mental undressing. It was a look Karen was very familiar with. "Adult films?" he asked.

Karen giggled. "Close, but not quite. I'm a soapgirl."

" _Ah._ " An amused smile. "Well, I'm sure you must be highly requested. May I ask which soapland you're at?"

"You may, but given our situation you'll forgive me if I decline to answer. Why, do you frequent such places, Sakurazuka-san?"

"I've visited on occasion. Mostly for work purposes, though I have gone for myself sometimes."

"Really?" Karen lifted a finely-shaped eyebrow. "You didn't strike me as the type; I would have expected you to find satisfaction in a more personal arrangement."

"Oh? Why do you say that?"

"In my work one quickly learns how to place a customer into a general ‘type', and yours, Sakurazuka-san, is one I've met plenty of times before – you're the ambitious and/or obsessive ones working a high-powered career in politics or business who woo and keep stimulating mistresses to add spice to your life. If you visit a soapland or brothel it's only because you're looking for a pleasant distraction to pass the time, because fun as soapgirls can be anything what we do is purely business: you get what you want when you pay and you can walk away without complications. There's no challenge in that, and I can see you getting bored very quickly, hence my opinion that you'd find a less predictable intimacy with higher stakes far more fulfilling."

Silence for a little while, broken only by hum of the kitchen exhaust fan. "I see," said Sakurazuka at last, a small, strange smile on his face. "You have a unique insight, Kasumi-san. Do you know where Arisugawa-kun keeps the miso?"

Karen smiled herself – the change of subject was obvious, but given what she had just done to him she let it go. "Top shelf of the fridge at the back. Would you like any help? You're cooking for a lot of people."

"If you like," replied Sakurazuka, closing the fridge door. "The omelette needs to be started on to serve with the rice. There are only five eggs, though, so the omelette will have to be rationed, either that or someone will have to go without."

"I'm sure Sorata-kun would be happy to sacrifice his portion for Arashi-chan," said Karen reassuringly. She went to get a mixing bowl, something which required her to open a cupboard to Sakurazuka's blind side. He moved politely aside, though Karen didn't miss the way he turned his head slightly so as to watch her. "I have to ask, Sakurazuka-san, just how did you end up here making breakfast for the Dragons of Heaven anyway?"

"It's a long story. I came to pay a private convalescence visit and thought it would be a nice touch to make the patient breakfast, only I was found by Arisugawa-kun followed in quick succession by the Ise priestess and Yuzuriha-chan, so what was supposed to be a quiet meal for one suddenly became breakfast for the house. I certainly didn't plan things to turn out this way, believe me."

"I see," said Karen uncertainly as she opened the fridge. The explanation still didn't make much sense, but then her brain caught up with her. "Wait, convalescence visit? Just who are you visiting?"

Sakurazuka gave her an enigmatic look but otherwise did not reply. Mentally Karen began to run through the inhabitants of the house. Of course all of them had been hurt in battle at some point, but right now there was only person actively recovering from a serious injury …

Karen's eyes narrowed. Suspiciously she looked over at Sakurazuka but before she could say anything there was the sound of hurrying feet from the top of the stairs. Inuki, obediently watching them from the dining area, immediately got up and began to wag his tail as Yuzuriha thumped down into the kitchen. "Sorry I took so long!" the girl said breathlessly, short damp hair flying about her face. "Karen-san, are you all right?"

"I'm perfectly fine." Karen beamed at her, showing her the eggs in the bowl. "I was just helping Sakurazuka-san make breakfast."

"Oh, good." Briefly Yuzuriha glanced at the Sakurazukamori, a little apprehensive but otherwise her usual self. "Um, what are you making?" she asked.

Sakurazuka lifted the soup ladle. "Right now I'm making the miso soup, and Kasumi-san has kindly taken charge over the omelette while we wait for the others to come back. That's a very cute outfit you're wearing, Yuzuriha-chan."

Yuzuriha glanced down at her outfit, which was a sleeveless yellow dress over a white turtle-neck and white stockings. The dress had a Hello Kitty face in the middle. "Th-thanks!" she said, blushing. "Ah, can I help with anything?"

"You certainly can," said Sakurazuka genially. "Check on the rice, if it's done I presume Arisugawa-kun has a wooden pot somewhere to scoop it into, and if you can pass me the tofu and wakame that would be very helpful. Oh, and put the kettle on for tea, please."

"Okay!"

Obediently, Yuzuriha went to check on the rice-cooker; seeing it still busy she then went to the pantry. Karen, cracking eggs into the mixing bowl, kept a close eye on her; while it certainly seemed that Sakurazuka really didn't have any ulterior motives in being in their kitchen other than cooking, there was no getting around the fact that he was the enemy and Karen was well aware of the Sakurazukamori's lethal reputation. Cute little Yuzuriha could very well be a lamb around a leopard, and Karen was rather protective of little lambs. "Is anyone else awake upstairs, Yuzu-chan?" she asked as the girl put the wakame and tofu on the counter.

"Mm. Kamui isn't in his room, so I guess he's gone for a walk. Subaru-san is still asleep, which is really weird because he's usually up early, should I go call him?"

"Leave him be," said Sakurazuka, and Karen glanced at him, alerted by the sharp note in what had up until now been a congenial voice. "After the past few nights Subaru-kun is finally getting some proper rest, so don't disturb him until his breakfast is ready."

Slightly intimidated by the firmness of this order Yuzuriha nodded before hurrying to the tea; Karen for her part was studying the man's profile. Steadily the hints were falling into place … "And how would you know so much about Subaru-san's sleep patterns, Sakurazuka-san?" she asked archly.

"Personal observation." Sakurazuka had his back to her as he said this, and he didn't turn around. Convenient. "I wouldn't ask him about it, though; Subaru-kun tends to be rather sensitive about such things."

"As he should be," Karen murmured, hiding a smile as she beat the eggs. Oh dear. So Sakurazuka thought of Subaru as Subaru-kun, not Sumeragi-san or even Subaru-san which was what all the Seals used, and even more tellingly the familiarity was deep enough for Sakurazuka to go into the heart of enemy territory to visit and cook breakfast for the onmyouji. Sakurazuka's motivations for being here were getting rapidly clearer. Next question – did Subaru himself know that Sakurazuka was in their kitchen?

There was a loud creak from the front door, and then the sound of shoes being kicked off. Inuki and Yuzuriha looked up. "Oh, the others must be back from the shops!" the inugami mistress said excitedly. "About time – I'm getting really hungry!"

"Aren't we all," said Karen as footsteps began to make their way down the hall, a counterpoint to Yuzuriha's light steps as she went to meet them. Off-side Sakurazuka was chopping the white block of tofu into neat squares; it probably wasn't the best idea to give him a knife, but given how well the morning truce was going it was probably all right—

"Eh? Kamui-chan, you're back! Hey, you'll _never_ guess what's happened this morning—"

"What. The. _HELL?!_ "

Karen whipped her head around. Sure enough, there, standing in middle of the dining room was Kamui, all unruly black hair and stiff limbs frozen in shock. His purple eyes, usually haunted and sorrowful, were currently wide and looked to be made of two parts disbelief and three parts death glare. Or maybe the ratio was the other way around. Whatever; in any case it was patently and excruciatingly obvious that the recipient of Kamui's attention was the Dragon of Earth at the stove, and what was also patently and excruciatingly obvious was the fact that if Karen or Yuzuriha didn't do something soon the morning truce was going to go up in smoke or—

"How the _fuck_ did you get in and what the _hell_ are you doing with Sorata's cooking things if you're here to do anything to hurt Subaru I swear I'll—"

"Good morning, Kamui-kun," said Sakurazuka cheerfully. "You're looking well, and no, I haven't done anything to hurt Subaru-kun and yes, I have permission to use the kitchen. Would you like some soup?"

Or Sakurazuka could throw fuel on the fire and make Kamui's disbelieving death glare an incredulous outraged death glare. A death glare that was now surrounded by an intensifying battle-aura. Inwardly Karen sighed – _men!_ – and, bracing herself, stepped out to intervene …


	5. The Kamui

Kamui never slept well nowadays, haunted, as he was by the time he had lost the two people most precious to him. He had bad dreams almost every night, dreams that made him wake up sweating to stare at the ceiling until he either fell into an uneasy doze or morning came. This night had been no different, and, trying to keep his mind blank, he had blearily watched the red numbers of his bedside table clock count the minutes from 3:57, 3:58, 3:59 … it seemed to take a month to get to 4:30 and a year to get to 5:00 during which his mind kept swirling around thoughts of Kotori and Fuuma, Fuuma, Subaru losing his eye, the other Seals who fought for him despite only just meeting him, himself and Fuuma … it went on and on. A century later he had thought he heard the front door open and close, which he knew was Sorata going out for an early morning jog, and Kamui suddenly made a decision: he got up, threw on some clothes and shoes, and jumped out the window to try and walk off the tension. He chose streets at random, taking turns on impulse as long as he generally kept heading in the same direction. It took a while, but eventually the quiet solitude of pre-dawn began to calm him and by the time he got to the tree that marked Kotori's grave he could breathe without feeling as if his chest was wrapped in iron bands. Strangely enough Kotori's tree was one place Kamui was able to feel something like peace, as if his childhood friend was reaching out to shelter him, and when he sat down Kamui actually managed to sleep there for a short time until the sunlight was strong enough to hit his eyes. That made him feel better, enough that breakfast actually seemed attractive, so with a small, sad pat to the tree Kamui headed home thinking that maybe yes, could face the day ahead. Unfortunately when he got back, the day turned out to have a nasty surprise in the kitchen.

"What. The. _Hell?!_ "

Kamui felt as if his eyes were bugging out of his head. There, standing in the kitchen holding Sorata's best chopping knife, was a Dragon of Earth. Not just any Dragon of Earth, oh no, but the Sakurazukamori, the one who had single-handedly fought four Seals, a Dreamgazer and a wind-user under the Diet Building, who had attacked him and Kotori, and the one who was far too deeply and badly involved with the person Kamui now considered his closest friend— "How the _fuck_ did you get in and what the _hell_ are you doing with Sorata's cooking things if you're here to do anything to hurt Subaru I swear I'll—"

"Good morning, Kamui-kun," said the Sakurazukamori with irritating cheerfulness. "You're looking well, and no, I haven't done anything to hurt Subaru-kun and yes, I have permission to use the kitchen. Would you like some soup?"

To this audacious reply Kamui could only splutter and stare. The Sakurazukamori merely raised an eyebrow, and that was the final straw. Without thinking Kamui began to summon his power, making the air crackle as he prepared to attack—

" _Don't!_ " Startled, Kamui lost his concentration as Yuzuriha suddenly stepped in front of him frantically waving her hands. Not only Yuzuriha, _Karen_ was also stepping between him and the Sakurazukamori with a concerned expression. Kamui had barely noticed them earlier, so shocked was he to see the Sakurazukamori in the house, but now he certainly did, especially since they seemed to be _stopping him from attacking—_ "It's okay, Kamui-chan!" Yuzuriha said quickly, "Sakurazuka-san isn't going to hurt us!"

Kamui gawked at her. "Are you crazy?!" he demanded. "He's a _Dragon of Earth_ of course he's here to hurt us! Hell, even if he _wasn't_ a Dragon of Earth he's the Sakurazukamori assassin so yes, he's here to hurt us!"

"Except he hasn't yet," said Karen calmly. Kamui whipped his head around at her – Yuzuriha being irrational was one thing, but the older Seal was a different matter entirely. The woman gave him a reassuring smile. "It's a very ah, unusual situation, but Sakurazuka-san has been here for a quite a while now and the only thing that has been hurt is the tofu, so there's no reason to start flinging power bolts yet. Adversaries we may be we're all capable of having a civilised conversation."

If muscles had allowed it Kamui's jaw would have dropped to the floor. What was going on? Was he maybe still in the middle of a bad dream, albeit one completely nonsensical? Or did the Sakurazukamori include mind control in his bag of tricks? Certainly Kamui couldn't think of any other way to explain why Karen was not only completely unconcerned by the fact that a Dragon of Earth was in the kitchen, but calling him by name and behaving as if having deadly mortal enemies dropping in for a house call was something that happened every day. And where was Subaru in all this, did he know that his nemesis was under their roof or – heaven forbid – had the Sakurazukamori already done something to him?

There was a rattle of keys, and Kamui whipped his head around to see Sorata and Arashi in the front door followed closely by Seiichiro Aoki. "Ah, good morning, Kamui-kun!" said the wind-master, grocery bags in hand. "How are you this morning, are you well?"

Kamui ran towards them desperate for some kind of sanity. "Where have you been!" he demanded. "The Sakurazukamori is—"

"In the kitchen, we know." Sorata scowled as he kicked off his shoes, both arms laden with bags. "Trust me, everyone knows and we're not happy about it, however since he's behaving himself and cooking us all breakfast we're giving him the benefit of the doubt but if he even sneezes funny we all get to whack him. Has he done anything?"

"Cooked soup and rice, had a lovely chat with Karen-san who is now kindly taking care of the omelette, and patiently waited for you to return with the rest of the food," came the answer from behind Kamui. Kamui jumped and whirled to find the Sakurazukamori smiling at him, Yuzuriha by his side, and all in all acting as if he were welcoming the returning Seals into his own house. "I hope you bought enough, because it's looking to be quite the breakfast party. Yuzuriha-chan, why don't you help them with the bags?" Kamui stared goggle-eyed as the inugami mistress obeyed the assassin's directive and went to relieve Aoki of his load. "You too, Kamui-kun."

Kamui glared defiantly at the Sakurazukamori. "What makes you think I'm going to do as you say?"

"The fact that you're one of the youngest here, the wind-master has just walked several blocks carrying heavy bags of food, and cute little Yuzuriha-chan can only manage so much by herself. You contributing some assistance should be such an obvious courtesy that shouldn't even have needed saying – or did I give you too much credit?"

Ears burning, Kamui sullenly gave in and went to help. Thankfully no one seemed to have heard the exchange, but just in case Kamui took not only the rest of Aoki's load but some of what Yuzuriha had taken. Both arms thus weighed down, he hurried down the hall in Sorata and Arashi's wake to the kitchen to off-load it all, all the while plotting creative ways to smash the Sakurazukamori's face into the wall. Which he wouldn't actually do because attacking the Sakurazukamori would undoubtedly result in a full-on fight and Imonoyama Nokoru would definitely not appreciate the residential area of CLAMP Campus being turned into a battlefield. Also, there was some kind of truce going on. Also, there was still Subaru to think about.

Just where was Subaru anyway?

In the kitchen, Karen was in command at the stove. "Perfect timing," she called out as everyone filtered into the dining area – staggering a little with all the bags, Kamui quickly and gratefully set them down by the pantry. "I'm almost done with the omelette, so the stove will be free in a minute. Sakurazuka-san, what else needs to be done?"

Kamui tensed as the Sakurazukamori stepped past him. "The fish needs to be cut up and grilled," he said. "Other than that, it's just the natto and nori that need to be taken out – is there enough of that, Arisugawa-kun?"

"If there wasn't before, there is now," Sorata replied shortly. He was helping Arashi put the groceries away. Meantime, Aoki had gone to Karen's side to whisper into her ear. "And by the way, since I _am_ the resident chef in this house if you don't mind, Mr. Sakurazukamori, _I'll_ be the one cutting up the fish since truce or not, I don't like the idea of you holding the knives."

The assassin's response to this was merely to shrug. "If you insist. Kasumi-san, how's my soup going?"

"Smells good, though you might want to see for yourself …"

It seemed to Kamui that he was in some incomprehensible alternate universe. The Sakurazukamori was joining Karen at the stove and along the way cordially greeting Seiichiro Aoki who politely inclined his head in response. Sorata, while he was sending regular suspicious looks at the assassin searching for the slightest hint of trouble, was otherwise calmly going about the kitchen preparing to cook as though this were any other morning, even keeping up his flirtatious teasing of his 'lovely spouse' Arashi who remained studiously unmoved even as she assisted him. And Yuzuriha, she was flitting around getting out plates and cutlery with help from Aoki who had evidently and wisely decided that there was too many people in the kitchen and it would be far more practical for him to help set up the table. That, or maybe he shared Kamui's low opinion about the Sakurazukamori's conversation.

Everyone was busy doing something, except Kamui. Most likely this oversight was due to the fact that there was more than enough people in the kitchen and only so much to be done. Whatever the reason, it meant that not only was Kamui free, he was practically ignored. Slowly, trying not to attract any attention to himself, Kamui turned and headed for the stairs.

"And where do you think you're going?"

Immediately Kamui stiffened. Carefully turned to glare at the Sakurazukamori. "That's none of your business," he snapped.

"If you're simply going up to your room, yes, however if you're going to check on or do anything that involves Subaru-kun, then it is most definitely my business." The Sakurazukamori smiled, an expression which reminded Kamui too much of a transformed Fuuma, only older and more restrained. "Besides, everybody is helping out with breakfast, you should stay and help."

"There's nothing for me to do." Why was he even having this conversation? "In any case, I _live_ here; I certainly don't need your permission to go upstairs _or_ see Subaru if that's what I want!"

"On that last point, I beg to differ – particularly since you seem to claim a great deal of familiarity with 'Subaru'."

Kamui blinked. Stared at the Sakurazukamori, the way the apparently friendly smile was off-set by the iciness of his gaze. This was the first time he was seeing the Sakurazukamori up close, and he was far more unsettling in the flesh than the glimpse of memory Subaru had allowed when Within. "Are you saying I need your permission to be friends with Subaru?" Kamui asked incredulously.

"If you want to be so blunt about it, yes."

There was a stunned pause. "You're kidding."

"I'm perfectly serious."

For a moment Kamui could only stare in disbelief. When he opened his mouth, it was with the first thing that popped into his head. "You," he said flatly, "are a _freak_."

The Sakurazukamori shrugged. "I'm merely looking after what is mine."

"What is yours?" Kamui's voice level was rising with his outrage; he'd known the Sakurazukamori was a cold-hearted murderer, but this, this _obsession_ was just— "Subaru is _my friend_ , and what's more, his _own person_ , not a pet or thing, he doesn't belong to anyone, least of all _you_. I know what you did to him, Sakurazukamori, and if you think I'm going to let you anywhere _near_ Subaru—" Kamui broke off as the Sakurazukamori began to laugh. "What!"

There was a glint in the man's good eye. "Your claim that you won't let me near Subaru-kun has a fundamental flaw," he said, voice darkly amused. "You know nothing of what lies between us."

Kamui's violet eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

Before the Sakurazukamori could reply – if he was going to reply – Sorata had come up to them seemingly casual but the fact that he was backed up by Arashi and Karen said otherwise. "Is everything okay over here?" he asked innocently.

Inwardly Kamui told himself to calm down as the Sakurazukamori flashed a smile. "Everything's perfectly fine, Arisugawa-kun," he said amiably. "Kamui-kun and I are just having a little talk."

Sorata, obviously, didn't buy it. "Didn't look like it from where I was watching. Kamui?"

"… It's fine." Kamui took a deep breath – he was better than this, and he would _not_ give the Sakurazukamori the satisfaction of being the one who ruined the breakfast truce. "I'm fine. Is breakfast ready?"

"Pretty much. Everything's on the table; I'm just finishing up the fish—"

"What's going on down here?"

The quiet interruption made everyone stop. Kamui whipped his head around to the stairs, eyes widening. "Subaru?"

There was no response. The Sumeragi was standing half-way down the stairs dressed in a light grey yukata that made his skin seem even paler than usual. He had one hand on the banister leaning his entire weight on it as if his legs were too unsteady to support him on their own. He seemed dazed as well, an impression that wasn't helped by the bandage around his eye, for he was apparently struggling to lift his head to look at everyone, and what could be seen of his face showed that his expression was heavy, almost groggy, like he was having trouble staying awake.

Yuzuriha was the first to react. "Subaru-san!"

"Subaru!" Automatically Kamui stepped forward intending to run up the stairs to help his friend – only to stop in his tracks as a shadow moved in front of him.

"Ah, Subaru-kun, you're awake." The Sakurazukamori spoke calmly, smoothly, even. As if now that this person had arrived, everybody else in the room was completely irrelevant. Kamui hated it. "You're just in time to eat, but I have to say I'm a little disappointed because I was hoping to bring you breakfast in bed. Did you have to break my sleep spell like that?"


	6. The Wind Master

Seiichirou Aoki, husband, wind-master and magazine editor, wasn't quite sure what to make of things. It was his first weekend alone since seeing off his wife and daughter on their trip to the country (for their own safety, though he had pitched at as a chance for Shimako's mother to spend time with her granddaughter) and while he had intended to catch up with Karen and the younger Seals it was strictly as a social gathering, nothing to do with the End of the World. Dealing with kekkai and fighting the Dragons of Earth was something he had hoped to avoid at all costs, and even though that hope was in the same vein as hoping every submission would come on time in the publishing business, it was still worth holding on to. Especially now. While Seiichirou had been completely prepared to do battle when a Dragon of Earth appeared in the Seals' front door, the fact that the Sakurazukamori apparently wasn't looking for a fight was an immense relief. Hopefully things would stay that way.

Up until now, it had seemed things would. When Seiichirou had taken Sorata and Arashi to the shops everything they said pointed towards the Sakurazukamori having no intention of fighting, destroying any kekkai, or doing anyone any harm at least for now. What he actually did want by invading the Seals' home was another question entirely, though from Sorata's account of where he had found the Sakurazukamori in the first place, together with everyone's general knowledge as to the two onmyouji, it was a good assumption that it was something to do with the Sumeragi. Seiichirou had told Karen as much when they had returned with the groceries, and she had smilingly whispered that she'd reached the same conclusion through her own means. Seiichirou had a good idea of what those means were from their interview several months ago, and wondered how the Sakurazukamori had handled them. Probably better than he had. Only Seiichirou's professionalism had kept him from sliding into awkwardness when interviewing Karen for his soap girl piece, something Shimako had teased him about when he told her afterwards. The Sakurazukamori on the other hand seemed to be a man who relished verbal games and was a master at them. He cheerfully countered Sorata's grumbles, gently teased Arashi, chatted with Yuzuriha, outright flirted with Karen and cordially greeted Seiichirou himself in passing, all in all maintaining the illusion that instead of being one of their deadliest enemies the Sakurazukamori was a long lost friend who had unexpectedly dropped by to visit. Only Kamui was openly resistant to his charms, and Seiichirou had had a moment of tension while setting the table when he saw the Sakurazukamori confront Kamui by the stairs. It had quickly calmed when Sorata, Arashi and Karen stepped in, but then the final player – and apparently the breakfast's guest of honour – made his appearance and the tension spiked a thousandfold.

"What's going on down here?"

Startled, Seiichirou looked up the stairs to find the Sumeragi. The young man stood dressed in a light grey yukata, heavily leaning one hand on the banister like a willow in a strong wind. He seemed dazed, an impression not helped by the bandage around his right eye, for he seemed to be fighting to stay awake and barely aware of the attention upon him. He didn't react to his name when Yuzuriha called it, nor to Kamui – but he did react to the Sakurazukamori. "Ah, Subaru-kun, you're awake," the man said calmly. "You're just in time to eat, but I have to say I'm a little disappointed because I was hoping to bring you breakfast in bed. Did you have to break my sleep spell like that?"

"… Seishirou-san."

One of the things Sorata had gone on about was how he had found the Sakurazukamori in Subaru's bed and the intimate position the two of them had been in (fully clothed, as Sorata had taken pains to emphasise). Seiichirou's eyebrows had made a temporary home in his hair at that revelation and he had seriously wondered if the young monk had been over-exaggerating. Now his eyebrows were back up around his hairline. Subaru had turned towards the Sakurazukamori's voice and despite his condition began to descend the stairs again even as the Sakurazukamori went up. The moment Subaru's hand left the banister, but, he lost his balance making some of the Seals gasp in a way that Seiichirou physically felt as they envisioned broken bones, none of which eventuated as the Sakurazukamori quickly cleared the last few steps to catch the young man in his arms. "You shouldn't be be moving about," said the Sakurazukamori clinically, manoeuvring Subaru to securely hold him. As he did so he shot a warning look that promised death to anyone who spoke – Seiichirou had no doubt that he was serious even against all the Seals and their Kamui who looked to be on the verge of apoplexy restrained only by Karen's iron hand on his arm. "Let me take you back to bed and I'll fetch you later—"

"You were gone." Subaru's voice was muffled as he pressed his face against the Sakurazukamori's chest, one hand tangling in the man's shirt – no, Subaru definitely wasn't aware of his audience. "You were gone, you're always gone when I wake up—"

"Subaru-kun, this isn't the time—"

"—also you put me to sleep which you know I hate take the spell off—"

"—that's not a good idea; I really think you should let me take you back upstairs—"

"—I said take it _off!"_

Dead silence followed Subaru's shout. Seiichirou realised he was holding his breath along with everyone else. Like a hawk the Sakurazukamori looked down at all of them, possessively embracing Subaru who fit so comfortably against him and mind obviously racing to find a way to manage the situation. Oddly enough Seiichirou felt sympathy for him. "As you wish," he said at last.

Subaru seemed to relax at this, even nestling closer. Before their eyes the Sakurazukamori tilted Subaru's head upwards to press lips against his forehead eliciting a sigh from the younger man. It was hard to see with Subaru's bandaged side towards them, however the way Subaru straightened to stand properly was indication enough of his return to full awareness. Shaking his head a little to clear it he pushed back from the Sakurazukamori, took in his surroundings – and saw a room of staring eyes.

The change was immediate. Subaru's face turned corpse-pale and he shoved himself away from the Sakurazukamori as if scorched. The Sakurazukamori didn't resist. "I did say you should have let me take you back upstairs," he murmured, but such was the silence in the room that everyone heard. Although frozen in place Subaru looked ready flee at a single word – Seiichirou wasn't sure about Kamui or Sorata, but he certainly wasn't going to say anything. Although he and Subaru were allies as Dragons of Heaven he couldn't say they were friends, let alone close, and if Seiichirou knew anything about the quiet, aloof younger man it was only by reputation as the thirteenth head of the Sumeragi onmyouji clan. That reputation inevitably came with mention of the Sakurazukamori but there had never been even a hint of anything like this ... the Sakurazukamori put an arm around Subaru's stiff shoulders, and if Subaru tried to escape Seiichirou strongly suspected the Sakurazukamori's fingers were cautioning him against it. "I've made you breakfast, come and eat it'll help you feel better – Yuzuriha-chan, is the table set?"

His question was bright and cheerful, just like when he had greeted Seiichirou and Karen at the front door, but what had been a joke before Subaru's arrival was now a warning to all of them to continue as they were. Yuzuriha, however, seemed uncertain if the way she clutched Inuki's ruff was anything to go by, and she looked around for guidance as to what to do. Arashi's face was dark and stormy, Sorata's even more so, and Kamui, well, if it weren't for Karen he would have ended this show long ago. Seiichirou understood their feelings, but unlike them he also understood what the Sakurazukamori was trying to do saving Subaru's dignity. "The table's set," he said clearly, making sure to smile. He didn't react as everyone looked at him, meeting only Sakurazuka's gaze and its cool acknowledgment. "And Sorata-kun has done the omelette and fish so everything's ready."

"About time." This from Karen who flashed the younger Seals her own dazzling smile. "I've been sneaking sips of Sakurazuka-san's soup, I'm that hungry. Shall we, everyone?"

Like statues brought to life the children began to move, not as Seiichirou was relieved to see to call on powers but obediently towards the kitchen, and as they did the room's tension noticeably eased a few notches. Sorata and Arashi went to bring out the food and place it on the table, Yuzuriha to serve the rice and Kamui— "Be a dear and get tea for everyone, okay?" said Karen lightly, fingers digging into the boy's arm. It did the trick and Kamui moved to obey, though not without shooting the Dragon of Earth a murderous look first. Sakurazuka for his part was making his way down the stairs to the table guiding Subaru who was avoiding everyone's eyes. Karen scanned the table with its eight chairs: three on each side and one at either end. "Hm. Sakurazuka-san, why don't you take that middle chair where Subaru-san can sit to your right on the corner. I'll sit opposite you between Kamui-chan and Sora-chan, Yuzuriha-chan can go at the head of the table next to Subaru-san, and Arashi-chan will sit facing her on the other end beside Sora-chan. Aoki-san, you don't mind sitting next to Sakurazuka-san, do you?"

Seiichirou saw the wisdom of Karen's seating plan immediately. Sakurazuka obviously wasn't going to sit anywhere other than next to Subaru, and Yuzuriha was probably the one Sakurazuka would most tolerate on Subaru's other side. Putting Kamui opposite Subaru was a risk but should appease the boy, and in any case having Karen beside him would curb any outbursts. Karen herself would be directly opposite Sakurazuka taking on his attention which she was eminently able to handle, and if necessary she could also control Sorata assuming the young monk wasn't distracted by being next to Arashi. That left Seiichirou to take the remaining seat between Arashi and Sakurazuka. It was an arrangement that both kept an eye on Sakurazuka and the children out of direct harm's way while also optimising social interaction, and Seiichirou's admiration of Karen went up yet another notch. "I'd be happy to," he said, moving towards his chair as everyone made their way towards theirs. "Though I believe we haven't been properly introduced – I'm Aoki Seiichirou."

He bowed slightly to the Dragon of Earth, feeling rather like he was at a business event where regardless of what he thought of people he had to smile and make an effort to network. "Sakurazuka Seishirou," replied the Dragon of Earth, also bowing though Seiichirou couldn't help noticing how he kept his hand on Subaru's shoulder. "Thank you for what you did just then; I'm sure I speak for Subaru-kun and myself when I say it was greatly appreciated."

A business event with spouses. Seiichirou wondered what his wife would have made of this couple. Up close Sakurazuka proved to be of a similar tall height, with black hair and disquieting mismatched eyes of blind white (why blind?) and amber-gold, and although his shirt and trousers looked slept in Seiichirou doubted the man was concerned about his appearance. Beside him the normally remote and graceful Sumeragi seemed to be moving on autopilot with eyes glued to the floor, and while Seiichirou couldn't help his feelings of reproach, even betrayal that Subaru was carrying on a relationship with the enemy under this very roof, he also felt incredibly sorry for him. No wonder Subaru and Kamui understood each other so well. "It was the least I could do. Regardless of our roles, neither of us wants to see people hurt today."

Sakurazuka's smile didn't change, but it seemed to Seiichirou that there was now something wary about it. "So it would seem. Please, after you."

"… Thank you."

Seiichirou took his seat, watching out of the corner of his glasses how Sakurazuka pulled the chair out for Subaru who accepted with an air of martyrdom. No doubt this action was noticed by Sorata because he quickly got up from his seat opposite Seiichirou to pull out Arashi's chair. "My lady," Sorata said grandly, gesturing to her chair with a deep bow. Arashi rolled her eyes as she sat down, though not without elbowing Sorata in the stomach first. "Ow! Ah, my lady wounds me!"

Dramatically Sorata fell back into his chair. Seiichirou couldn't help but laugh only to realise that around the table Karen, Sakurazuka and Yuzuriha were laughing with him. Sorata grinned, and just like that, the room's tension fell again. "Well, if we're all settled, let's dig in," said Karen bringing her hands together. "Itadakimasu!"

"Itadakimasu!"

Eight pairs of chopsticks clacked, and finally Seiichirou could properly appreciate the entire spread of food. A large plate with grilled fish pieces was rapidly being decimated, as was the other plate containing thick yellow strips of omelette. Another plate of loose lettuce leaves was being picked at by the girls, while the side dishes of natto and pickled vegetables were being noticeably avoided by the boys. There was a plate of rice in front of him together with a cup of tea and a bowl of miso soup with tofu cubes. Best to enjoy that before it cooled. Lifting the bowl to his face Seiichirou sipped it slowly. "This is excellent," he said, surprised.

"Yeah!" Yuzuriha beamed at everyone, the tips of Inuki's ears peeking above the tabletop to her right. "Homemade soup is the best – thank you, Sakurazuka-san!"

"My pleasure, Yuzuriha-chan, I'm glad you like it!"

"Hmpf. It's okay, I suppose." This from Sorata with his mouth half full; at Arashi's glare he quickly swallowed. "My grilled fish on the other hand is an amazing delicacy because I used my super secret Koya-san recipe so take that, Iron Chef Sakurazukamori!"

"Now, now, let's not get competitive," said Karen soothingly. "Besides, it can't be an Iron Chef contest when there's no key ingredient. Kamui-chan, if you're not going to drink your soup then at least eat the natto, it's good for you."

Kamui scowled across the table at Sakurazuka. "I'm not hungry. _Someone_ put me off my food."

Subaru seemed to flinch, Sakurazuka made to speak— "Do you cook a lot, Sakurazuka-san?" asked Seiichirou politely.

"For myself, yes, not so much for other people anymore."

"Lemme guess, poisoning people got old," Kamui retorted with a look of derision, an expression he quickly lost when Karen pinched him.

"Actually I used to cook for Subaru-kun." Sakurazuka put a piece of fish on Subaru's plate. "He had more appetite then which made things easier, that or he was too polite to say no to my hard work."

It was as if a cold wind had gusted through. "So, uh, how long have you and Subaru-san known each other?" asked Sorata uncertainly.

"Long enough."

"What's that in numbers?"

Sakurazuka sighed and looked at Subaru who looked at his barely touched plate. "You were six when we first met, so that makes it at least nineteen years? Let's say twenty since your birthday has already been. Twenty years."

Twenty years was longer than half the table had been alive. Seiichirou wondered how the number felt to the children, a number which to him was a straight line leading from school to love to work to marriage and a daughter. Outside his family he couldn't think of anyone he had known for that long, and even Shimako he had met in university— "You and Subaru-san were childhood friends?" asked Yuzuriha hesitantly.

"Oh, I wouldn't put it that way." Sakurazuka chuckled. "I was already in high school when we met and he was an adorable little thing in a tiny shikifuku. I take it he's never told you about it?"

"Enough." Subaru's voice was quiet, but since it was his first word since the staircase it had the impact of a tsunami. "Could you pour me some more tea?"

"No, because you're letting your food get cold instead of eating it," replied Sakurazuka calmly. "Contrary to what you think you can't live on tea alone – please don't, Kamui-kun."

Kamui froze with his hand halfway to the teapot's handle. "Why not?"

"I'll have some tea," Karen supplied, passing her cup to Kamui who, after throwing yet another killing glare at Sakurazuka and a desperate glance to Subaru, refilled it.

Sakurazuka ignored them and continued. "You need to eat, Subaru-kun. Your eye-injury won't heal properly if your body doesn't have proper nutrition, and you know I speak from experience on that subject. Or would you like me to feed you by hand?"

No one dared to say anything. While Seiichirou, Karen and Arashi at least put on the  appearance of focusing on their food Sorata, Kamui and Yuzuriha were openly staring to see what would happen. Seiichirou had his own predictions about the outcome and he turned out to be right: eventually, Subaru stiffly picked up his chopsticks and began to eat. Sakurazuka looked satisfied. "Good," he said, almost purring and paying no attention to the horribly fascinated stares. "Yuzuriha-chan, could you pass me the soy sauce?"

"Y-yes!"

Flustered, Yuzuriha grabbed the sauce bottle from its place by Kamui's plate and handed it over. Sakurazuka acknowledged this with a nod but otherwise didn't look at her, mismatched eyes scanning the table as if daring someone to say something either to him or Subaru. That dare looked to be taken up by Kamui who was practically trembling with anger— "Karen-san, did you say earlier that you had found a new patisserie?" Seiichirou asked quickly.

"I did, yes," responded Karen, easily catching on. She wasn't lying about the patisserie, only when she had found it as she had recommended the place to Seiichirou last week already. "It's in Ginza not far from the Shisheido building, they do a fantastic opera gateau. Apparently the man who owns it used to do the desserts at the Four Seasons hotel."

"Is that where the pastry chef went? I was a bit of a fan of the Four Seasons dessert menu," said Sakurazuka.

"Really?" Karen fluttered eyes at him. "Then can I presume you wouldn't deprive me of it by knocking it down anytime soon, Sakurazuka-san?"

"I can't speak for any of my fellows, but for you, Karen-san, I will give my word I will not touch it."

"Like that's worth anything," sneered Kamui. "No, I'm sick of playing polite," he spat out to Karen's chiding look and Seiichirou's warning one. "Sitting here and eating with this guy as if he's our friend, it's a fucking joke! Even without the Dragon of Earth thing he's a murderer a hundred times over and a perverted lying bastard without a shred of decency, he doesn't deserve being given the time of day let alone a seat at our table—"

"Kamui," said Subaru calmly, as if he were commenting on the weather. "Please don't speak like that to my guest."

Silence fell over the table like a death sentence. Seiichirou couldn't see Subaru's face from his angle but he could see Kamui's and the boy had gone pale as milk as he stared at Subaru. The rest of the Seals looked shocked and as for Sakurazuka he was uncharacteristically quiet. Then Subaru held out his cup. "Tea, please, Seishirou-san."

The Sakurazukamori immediately reached for the pot. "As you wish," he said.

There was not a trace of triumph or mockery in his voice. Had Seiichirou known him better, he would have guessed that even Sakurazuka himself had been surprised by Subaru. "Thank you," said Subaru, still calmly to Sakurazuka without looking at him. "You will of course be leaving after this."

"I will?" Sakurazuka sounded amused as he put down the teapot.

"It would be best."

"Hm." Languidly Sakurazuka sat back in his chair hands resting on the table as he looked at everyone. "What if I refused?"

His question was put calmly, but in a low voice and an expression that was a smile only in name. It made the hair on the back of Seiichirou's neck stand up. The younger Seals were exchanging glances, and both Sorata and Arashi had quietly brought their hands beneath the table. Yuzuriha too had dropped a hand to Inuki's ruff, while Kamui still stared at Subaru in hurt. Karen had a hand on his arm, and she met Seiichirou's eyes across the table in shared worry: disciplining the children was one thing, but they had no right to do the same to Subaru let alone with Sakurazuka. Opposing Dragons aside, it was painfully obvious to him that the relationship between the two onmyouji was deeply intimate to the point that their destined roles were practically irrelevant, and probably had been for years. Certainly no one had a right to interfere, meaning that unless they wanted to start a fight only Subaru had the standing to tell Sakurazuka to leave. He was also the only one Sakurazuka would likely listen to – or at least, that was what Seiichirou hoped. He held his breath.

"If you refuse everyone's breakfast will be ruined," said Subaru softly, eyes half closed over his tea. "I don't want that, your cooking is beautiful. As it has always been."

A heartbeat's silence, then Sakurazuka laughed softly still facing the other Seals rather than Subaru. "Very well. I'll go but on one condition, Subaru-kun: that you let me make you breakfast tomorrow morning."

Kamui spluttered. "If you think we're going to let you come back—"

"Tomorrow morning," continued Sakurazuka as if Kamui did not exist, "and every morning thereafter until the Final Day. At my table."

There was another silence, shorter this time. "Are you demanding that Subaru-san stay with you?" asked Sorata in a slightly strangled voice. "Like, you're mine move in stay with you?"

"No. Way." Kamui had his fists clenched on the table. "If you think we're going to allow you to take Subaru—"

Sakurazuka looked at him. It reminded Seiichirou of Fuuma Monou after the transformation, which was probably why the look shut Kamui up so fast. "I think rather than arguing about 'allowing' the choice is Subaru-kun's to make, is it not?" said Sakurazuka mildly.

No one spoke to that, including Subaru who was very, very still. It lasted a fraction too long, then Sakurazuka poured himself more tea adding off-handedly, "All that being said, I'm sure you appreciate, Subaru-kun, that what you choose does mean the difference between whether after this people are cleaning up plates and food scraps or bricks and bloodstains."

"Oh, so it's like _that_ , huh," growled Sorata, standing with lightning crackling about his fingers. Kamui too had shoved his chair back getting to his feet with fists clenched while Yuzuriha grabbed Inuki and Arashi called up steel—

"Enough!" Subaru snapped. It dumbfounded the children and Seiichirou could see Karen was just as startled as he. The Sumeragi was usually so quiet and unassuming ... "There's no need for anyone to fight or get hurt. I'll go."

Outrage immediately exploded up and down the table. "You didn't give Subaru any choice at all!" Kamui shouted at Sakurazuka over Inuki's barking. Karen didn't stop him, she herself was looking grim.

"Subaru-san, you don't have to do this," said Arashi urgently while Sorata was sparking and declaring, "The only person getting hurt is Sakura-suckonalemonface—"

Seiichirou never liked raising his voice, but being a father he certainly knew when and how to. " _Settle down!_ " he ordered, slapping the table to emphasise his words. Immediately the agitated shouting stopped. Seiichirou gave the children the look he used on his daughter in a tantrum. "All of you, sit and put powers away, we are not starting a battle in this house. I mean it, Kamui-san, unless you want to be the one explaining things to Imonoyama. Yuzuriha-san, please calm Inuki."

Reluctantly Yuzuriha, Arashi, Sorata and Kamui retook their seats in that order. When all was reduced from boiling over back to simmering Seiichirou breathed a little easier. Subaru and Sakurazuka he noticed, were tensely still and he caught Karen's eye. "I think we should talk about this. There's a sitting room next door, Karen-san, would you mind bringing Subaru-san and Sakurazuka-san there?"

"We're not all fitting in the sitting room," Sorata pointed out.

"I think it'll be best if just Karen-san, Sakurazuka-san, Subaru-san and I talk," said Seiichirou as reassuringly as possible as he got up. Of course the children, Kamui especially, opened their mouths to protest— "Don't worry, just finish breakfast and please don't try to listen. We shouldn't take long."

Karen was already on her feet and waiting for Sakurazuka and Subaru with a tight smile. The four younger Seals stared at them in disbelief, with Sorata and Kamui in particular gaping though in Sorata's case it probably had more to do with how Seiichirou had made the situation an adults-only affair. At least Sorata was sensible enough to know when to defer, Kamui on the other hand was half out of his chair— "Subaru, you don't have to protect me—"

"Kamui." The boy quietened. In the doorway Subaru wasn't looking at him. "Please."

Seiichirou didn't know what kind of expression Subaru was wearing but it obviously had an effect as the boy slowly sat staring at Subaru in a manner that looked uncomfortably like betrayal. Ignoring all the accusing stares from the children Seiichirou followed Sakurazuka out of the dining area and down the hall where Karen was letting Subaru through another doorway.

The sitting room was small and bright in the late morning sun, and probably had been used as a study in another time before being converted into a reading and comversation space. Importantly it had a door that closed and locked. Seiichirou made use of the former but not the latter once everyone was inside. There was a two-seater couch facing a pair of chairs across a small coffee table and Karen immediately settled the seating arrangements by taking one of the chairs. Once Sakurazuka and Subaru had taken the couch, Seiichirou joined them in the remaining chair facing Subaru. "So," said Seiichirou, and then stopped not sure how to begin.

Sakurazuka smirked at him, one arm casually resting on the armrest and an eyebrow raised. "Well, Wind-master? You're the one who brought us here."

"... Yes." Seiichirou resisted an urge to adjust his glasses the way he tended to do when feeling awkward; with the breakfast charade shot to pieces Sakurazuka was no longer bothering with any pretence of geniality. "I ah, thought it would be best to have a bit of privacy for this. Obviously the children mean well and don't like the idea of one of our own being taken by one of our opponents, which I certainly agree with. But there are some things that are harder for children to understand." Seiichirou turned directly to Subaru sitting up very straight looking deceptively fragile in yukata and bandage. "Sakurazuka-san didn't have to threaten anything, did he. You were thinking about going with him anyway."

It was impossible for Seiichirou to miss Subaru's slight intake of breath that told him he was right. For her part Karen's eyes widened with understanding, Sakurazuka on the other hand had turned to look at Subaru smirk gone. "Were you covering for him?" Karen asked Sakurazuka. "To give Subaru-san an excuse to agree to go with you?"

"Does it matter?" Sakurazuka countered, still looking hard at Subaru who was rigidly ignoring him, easy to do with his right eye bandaged. "The real question right now is where that leaves us."

'Us' probably meant Subaru and Sakurazuka himself, but Seiichirou chose to take it the other way. "For my part I just want to find a resolution that works for everyone and avoids a fight. Not just because of the destruction we would cause but because with all of us and you alone, Sakurazuka-san, it wouldn't be fair."

Sakurazuka chuckled darkly. "I wouldn't be so sure about that—"

"I meant more that it wouldn't be fair to Subaru-san."

Sakurazuka stopped chuckling. Seiichirou made note of it, that despite all the showing off Sakurazuka had done earlier about how well he knew Subaru there were some things he still did not grasp. Had Sakurazuka really not thought that if a fight broke out Subaru, despite his responsibility to Kamui as a Dragon of Heaven, could very well decide to defend the Dragon of Earth? "But Subaru-san, you still have to make a choice," continued Seiichirou gently addressing the too-silent younger man. "The children aren't here so there's no need to do so under any pretence or threats. Do you want to go with Sakurazuka-san?"

The Sumeragi hesitated for a moment before finally facing Seiichirou. "You are being very kind, Aoki-san," he said formally. "Even though I don't deserve it. As such, before I answer your question I would respectfully ask for your opinion as a fellow Seal regarding my ... actions."

His glasses needed cleaning. Seiichirou removed them to rub the lenses with his handkerchief. "Honestly ah, I don't think I know you well enough, Subaru-san, to have the right to any opinion. Ideally I'd say that your personal affairs are no business of ours, but when it puts us and especially the children at risk ... I am disappointed." Nervously he repositioned his glasses. "On the other hand, I know that like all of us you never asked to be put in the position of having to fight for the end of the world, let alone against someone so important to you. If you're looking for blame or censure for being in a relationship with someone we're fighting against, I won't give it."

Subaru's unbandaged eye had fallen closed. Sakurazuka seemed, what? Amused? "And you, Karen-san?" asked Subaru quietly.

"Same as Aoki-san – if you're looking for condemnation you won't get it from me," Karen said firmly. "What matters to me is that no one gets hurt today – Lord knows there'll be time for that later – and that if you choose to go with this man, you do so of your own will. I won't judge you on that choice." Suddenly she flashed a smile. "At least if you're with him we'll know you're eating properly."

"I've heard that line before," said Sakurazuka dryly.

Subaru's eye was damp when he opened it again. It gave Seiichirou a pang of sympathy as he watched the young man take a deep, shuddering breath. "Thank you," he said to Seiichirou and Karen. "I ... needed to hear that. Thank you." He turned his head slightly towards Sakurazuka. "Could you pack my things, Seishirou-san?"

Sakurazuka immediately got to his feet. "As you wish," he said simply. With a blink Seiichirou suddenly remembered a film he and Shimako had watched once at their university film club, a Western film about a princess and a masked pirate with swords and giants... "You still need to change out of that yukata though."

"I leave you to pick something for me."

"I think I should go with you if you don't mind," said Karen, also getting up. "We don't want the children jumping to conclusions seeing four people enter this room and only one walk out."

"You're a very sharp woman, Kasumi-san." Sakurazuka opened the door and held it for her. As Karen exited the Dragon of Earth met Seiichirou's eyes. "Again, Aoki-san, it seems I owe you thanks. I know I speak for Subaru-kun and myself when I say it is greatly appreciated."

The man bowed. Hurriedly Seiichirou got to his feet. "It was the least I could do," he repeated, also bowing. "Regardless of our roles, neither of us wants to see people hurt today."

Sakurazuka smiled strangely. Then, with a last glance at Subaru, he followed Karen out and closed the door behind him.

Heavily Seiichirou retook his seat. Opposite him Subaru's expression was again carefully neutral though his visible green eye seemed brighter than before. "What will you tell the others?" he asked Seiichirou quietly.

Seiichirou tried to smile; suddenly he felt tired. "I'll tell them the truth: that in exchange for you the Sakurazukamori agreed not to fight us."

The smile wasn't returned. "The truth," Subaru murmured to himself.

Seiichirou sighed. "You should explain things to Kamui-san though. The others, Karen-san and I can make them understand even if they don't like or know all of it, but Kamui-san, he'll look and fight for you. Especially if he thinks you're being coerced by Sakurazuka-san."

Subaru had bowed his head; his fingers were tightly clutched together but he didn't protest. Seiichirou awkwardly reached out to place his hand over those tangled fingers. "I'll ask Kamui-san to come. You have a short while before Sakurazuka-san comes back so you won't have to protect Kamui-san by acting so cold. I'll stand outside and alert you when Sakurazuka-san returns."

Still Subaru didn't say anything. With a last reassuring pat Seiichirou stood and went to open the door. "Kamui-san," he called out clearly. "Could you come in here, please."

A dark shock of hair appeared from the kitchen entryway. "We saw Karen take the Sakurazukamori upstairs," Kamui said accusingly. "What the hell is going on!"

"I'll explain later. For now, Subaru-san needs to talk to you. You don't have much time."

Kamui didn't have to be told twice. Seiichirou had to flatten himself against the wall as the boy dashed past him into the sitting room. "Subaru!"

"Kamui ..."

Seiichirou quietly shut the door. For a moment he leaned against it massaging thumb and forefinger against his closed eyes beneath his glasses. Was being a father going to be as hard as this as his daughter grew up? When she reached Yuzuriha's age, or Sorata and Arashi's, aware but still seeing more black and white in the wold than shades of grey? What if like Subaru she loved a person Seiichirou didn't approve of, or like Kamui fell for someone she could never have? Presuming of course she lived that long ...

 _The future is not preordained, and that's why I fight for it,_ Seiichirou told himself once more. No doubt people would die at the end of the year, possibly even himself, but until then they would live and hope and find happiness where they could. For Subaru that meant choosing the arms of their enemy. Much as he didn't agree, Seiichirou couldn't deny him that.

He tested the air-currents, sensing the movement of the people in the house. Karen and Sakurazuka were still upstairs packing (Seiichirou wondered what kind of conversation those two were having) while hidden around the corner in the dining room— "You might as well come out," said Seiichirou kindly to the three young Seals. "I'll explain what's going on ..."

 

* * *

 

"You did well," murmured Karen as the two of them watched Sakurazuka lift a bag onto his shoulder. "All peacefully sorted out."

"Thanks," Seiichirou replied tiredly. It was hard to see from the front doorstep but Subaru seemed to be talking firmly to Sakurazuka about ... something. Maybe the children had a better view of the conversation from their various windows, presuming they were watching. Kamui had shut himself in his room. "Though not everyone is left happy."

"It's not the kind of situation where there are happy endings all around."

"You're right on that count."

A taxi pulled up and Sakurazuka went to load Subaru's few bags. Subaru himself had turned back to the house, a figure in pale coat made even more unreal by bright sunlight. He wasn't smiling, but he did lift his hand. "I have to ask, Aoki-san," continued Karen conversationally as she and Seiichirou waved him goodbye. "How did you do it? Figure out so much about Subaru-san and Sakurazuka, I mean?"

For a moment Seiichirou was silent, watching instead as the taxi revved into life. "Some years ago my wife and I went to a dinner party," he said slowly. "It was only a few months after the birth of our daughter and Shimako had what I now realise was mild post-natal depression. It didn't help that I was working long hours because of the publishing cycle. This dinner party, I accepted the invitation without telling Shimako because I thought it would cheer her up to go out and have a break from the baby, and I insisted that she go. Shimako was obviously upset, we bickered all the way to the restaurant, and then sometime during the main course – pasta, I remember – when I kept asking her if she wanted a drink she just ... broke down. In front of all our friends. I was left trying to handle things in a way that would both comfort her and save her dignity even at the expense of mine ... we laugh about it now but it was a horrible situation to be in. In that sense I suppose I understood what Sakurazuka was trying to do with breakfast." He smiled wryly at Karen. "As for the rest, I've been married over ten years and have a vivacious young daughter. The little manipulations people in a long-term relationship do to each other to get what they want is something I'm all too aware of."

" _Ah._ " The taxi had pulled away and was now disappearing around the corner at the end of the road carrying away their ally with his enemy. "Though unlike Sakurazuka, you, Aoki-san, are a good man."

"Good men, bad men, we all act the same when it comes to defending the person we love."

"You think that Sakurazuka truly loves Subaru-san?"

"I'm choosing to think it."

"I like that. I'm going to think the same." The taxi gone Karen turned and smiled up at him. "Shall we go in and make sure the children clean up?"

"You do remember that these are children who can clear buildings in a single bound and wield powers out of this world?"

"Of course – but they're still children. And all children need adult supervision."

Seiichirou laughed as he opened the door. "You know, I don't think I even finished my breakfast!"

"Neither did I. Lunch?"

 

~owari~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic started off as a bit of fun and turned into something else entirely. Likely because when I started writing it I was closer to Sorata and Arashi's age and at time of finishing I'm closer to Karen and Seiichirou's age. Funny how perspective changes :) and considering that I started it in 2004 which is far too many years ago it's high time it got its final chapter. Thank you for waiting all this time and I hope you enjoyed the end!


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